Brahmasthala, Brahma-sthala: 7 definitions
Introduction:
Brahmasthala means something in Hinduism, Sanskrit, Jainism, Prakrit. If you want to know the exact meaning, history, etymology or English translation of this term then check out the descriptions on this page. Add your comment or reference to a book if you want to contribute to this summary article.
In Hinduism
Kavya (poetry)
Source: Wisdom Library: Kathāsaritsāgara1) Brahmasthala (ब्रह्मस्थल) is the name of an ancient city near Ujjayinī, according to the Kathāsaritsāgara, chapter 75. Accordingly, “... and in course of time I [Vikramakeśarin ] reached a village near it [Ujjayinī], named Brahmasthala, and there I sat down on the bank of a lake at the foot of a tree. There an old Brāhman, afflicted with the bite of a serpent, came up to me and said: ‘Rise up from this place, my son, lest you incur my fate. For there is a great serpent here, and I am so tortured by the bite which he has given me that I am now about to drown myself in this lake’”.
2) Brahmasthala (ब्रह्मस्थल) is the name of an ancient district (rāṣṭra) situated in Pāṭaliputra (Pāṭaliputrapura), according to the twenty-second story of the Vetālapañcaviṃśati in the Kathāsaritsāgara, chapter 96. Accordingly, “... in his [king Dharaṇīvarāha] realm, which abounded in Brāhmans, there was a royal grant to Brāhmans named Brahmasthala; and on it there lived a Brāhman of the name of Viṣṇusvāmin”.
The Kathāsaritsāgara (‘ocean of streams of story’), mentioning Brahmasthala, is a famous Sanskrit epic story revolving around prince Naravāhanadatta and his quest to become the emperor of the vidyādharas (celestial beings). The work is said to have been an adaptation of Guṇāḍhya’s Bṛhatkathā consisting of 100,000 verses, which in turn is part of a larger work containing 700,000 verses.
Kavya (काव्य, kavya) refers to Sanskrit poetry, a popular ancient Indian tradition of literature. There have been many Sanskrit poets over the ages, hailing from ancient India and beyond. This topic includes mahakavya, or ‘epic poetry’ and natya, or ‘dramatic poetry’.
In Jainism
General definition (in Jainism)
Source: archive.org: TrisastisalakapurusacaritraBrahmasthala (ब्रह्मस्थल) is the name of an ancient city, according to chapter 3.4 [padmaprabha-caritra] of Hemacandra’s 11th century Triṣaṣṭiśalākāpuruṣacaritra: an ancient Sanskrit epic poem narrating the history and legends of sixty-three illustrious persons in Jainism.
Accordingly:—“[...] In the afternoon of the thirteenth of the black half of Kārtika, (the moon being) in Citrā, observing a two days’ fast, the Lord (i.e., Padmaprabha) together with a thousand kings took the vows of mendicancy. On the next day the Master broke his fast with rice-pudding in the house of King Somadeva in the city Brahmasthala. The gods made there the five divine things; and the King made a jeweled platform where the Lord had stood”.
Jainism is an Indian religion of Dharma whose doctrine revolves around harmlessness (ahimsa) towards every living being. The two major branches (Digambara and Svetambara) of Jainism stimulate self-control (or, shramana, ‘self-reliance’) and spiritual development through a path of peace for the soul to progess to the ultimate goal.
Languages of India and abroad
Sanskrit dictionary
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Edgerton Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit DictionaryBrahmasthala (ब्रह्मस्थल).—(m. or nt.), holy ground (?): catvare brahmasthale vā ālikhitavyam (in a magic rite for a man or a woman desirous of glory, yaśas) (Ārya-)Mañjuśrīmūlakalpa 54.1. The precise meaning is quite obscure.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Cappeller Sanskrit-English DictionaryBrahmasthala (ब्रह्मस्थल).—[neuter] [Name] of a town.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary1) Brahmasthala (ब्रह्मस्थल):—[=brahma-sthala] [from brahma > brahman] n. Name of a city, [Catalogue(s)] (cf. -pura)
2) [v.s. ...] of a village, [Kathāsaritsāgara]
[Sanskrit to German]
Sanskrit, also spelled संस्कृतम् (saṃskṛtam), is an ancient language of India commonly seen as the grandmother of the Indo-European language family (even English!). Closely allied with Prakrit and Pali, Sanskrit is more exhaustive in both grammar and terms and has the most extensive collection of literature in the world, greatly surpassing its sister-languages Greek and Latin.
See also (Relevant definitions)
Partial matches: Brahma, Sthala.
Full-text: Somadeva, Agnisvamin, Dhavala, Dharanivaraha, Vishnusvamin, Mandaravati, Vimala.
Relevant text
Search found 2 books and stories containing Brahmasthala, Brahma-sthala; (plurals include: Brahmasthalas, sthalas). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:
Trishashti Shalaka Purusha Caritra (by Helen M. Johnson)
Part 7: Padmaprabha’s initiation < [Chapter IV - Padmaprabhacaritra]
Kathasaritsagara (the Ocean of Story) (by Somadeva)
Chapter LXXVI < [Book XII - Śaśāṅkavatī]
Chapter XCVI < [Book XII - Śaśāṅkavatī]
Chapter LXXX < [Book XII - Śaśāṅkavatī]